Keeping on top: With deregulation, a whole host of electric resellers jumped into the market because there’s a whole lot of electricity to sell: if Texas were a country, it’d be the 11th largest electricity consumer in the world! Just by itself, it uses as much electricity as Spain or Great Britain! That means there’s a whole lot of information you have to find, absorb, and process to make sure you’re getting the best rate for your needs.

As they’re advertised, the Digital Discount plan appears to save you $4 — but only if you use 32 percent of your energy on the weekends, which is the stat Reliant used to create the average price it advertises. Say you often travel for business during the week, and are only home cranking the air conditioner on weekends. If your energy use skews to 55 percent weekend use (for Reliant, that means 8 pm on Friday through 12 am Monday), suddenly Truly Free Weekends becomes a much better deal.

*Qualifying purchases. 1 membership per 12 months. Meerkat Meals – 2 for 1 on equivalent starters, mains and desserts. Cheapest free. Sunday to Thursday. Participating restaurants. Booking required, max 6 people. Excl Kids meals, drinks and certain days. App only. Meerkat Movies – 2 for 1 on Tuesday or Wednesday. Participating cinemas. Standard tickets only. Cheapest ticket free. Please note your claim may take up to 48 hours to validate. Rewards T&Cs apply
When you’re choosing a new energy deal, think about whether to go for dual fuel (where you get both your gas and electricity from the same company) or separate tariffs (where you get gas from one company, and electricity from another). It’s worth checking both options, as the combined price of separate tariffs can sometimes be less than a dual fuel offer.
We carefully screen Texas electricity providers in your area. Then, we list electricity rates and plans from top providers in a user-friendly format on our website, so you can compare the information. We handle the complex concerns and considerations, so you don’t have to. With our assistance, you no longer need to track down different electricity companies, rates, and plans, because we provide all the information you need to choose the best provider.
If you are a residential customer, you will find your Price-to-Compare in the bill message on your monthly DP&L bill. If you are comparing electric generation suppliers on price, paying a lower price in cents per kWh should result in a lower electric bill. However, suppliers may charge other fees and all costs should be considered before choosing a supplier (Read What to Consider).

Last year the duo said that sales would break the 500,000 milestone but significantly underestimated the market’s growth, so “at the start of 2017, Angus and I are going to throw prudence to the winds, run our hands through our grey sea-captain hair, and bet it breaks the million mark”, helped by higher oil prices, a flood of new, improved models on the market, ongoing falls in battery prices and improved charging infrastructure. The aforementioned need to improve air quality and the continued fallout from the Dieselgate scandal will play a part, too.

3. Customer service: When the only utility available has lousy customer service, nobody is surprised. They don’t even pretend to care – they know they have you over a barrel. With all these new players in town, however, it’s a slap in the face to be treated like royalty until you’ve signed on the dotted line and now they won’t even return your calls or the person on the phone can’t string three English words together or if he does speak English, he’s brand new and panicking trying to pull up your account information.
Utility companies are responsible for transmission and delivery of electricity even in energy deregulated parts of Texas and should be contacted in the event of a power outage. Your retail energy supplier may provide you competitive electric rates or exceptional customer service, but they cannot repair power lines or restore your service. In the case of an emergency, contact:

After Senate Bill 7 went into effect in January 2002, nearly 6 million power customers became eligible to choose their energy supplier. That number has grown through the years. By deregulating the state’s energy market, the Texas Senate gave constituents the power to choose. The process of energy deregulation in Texas dismantled the utilities’ monopoly over the electric market and encouraged customers to explore their energy options.

For example, if you use a small amount of energy each month, you expect to be rewarded — right? Unfortunately, nearly all electricity plans from Texas REPs are advertised as costing more per kWh the less electricity you use. It’s a little like buying in bulk: Providers often discount your bill when you cross certain kWh thresholds. For instance, one 12-month plan from StarTex Power quotes 8.1 cents per kWh for 1,000 kWh a month and 8.8 cents for 2,000 kWh per month, but 12.1 cents for 500 kWh per month. Why the difference? Customers get $35 back each month if they pass 1,000 kWh of use, and another $15 back per month if they cross 2,000 kWh. In this case, using half as much electricity as your neighbor on the same plan wouldn’t get you half the bill.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) does it for you. When you sign up for a plan with a new provider, ERCOT will send you a mailer confirming the switch. You have three days upon receiving the mailer to change your mind. If you don't, you'll have a new provider within seven days, and ERCOT will notify your old provider. Just remember, if you abandon a contract before it's complete, you will be on the hook for any fees or penalties detailed in its Terms of Service.

But they are not pessimistic about the sector. “The good news is that renewable energy has – at least on a levelized cost of electricity, or LCOE, basis – clearly achieved the long-awaited goal of grid competitiveness,” they say. Both onshore wind and solar projects have won auctions, in Morocco and Chile respectively, with bids of $30/MWh or less in the last 12 months. “These must be the lowest electricity prices, for any new project, of any technology, anywhere in the world, ever. And we are still going to see further falls in equipment prices,” they assert.

“We hope that 2017 marks the year when the world gets serious about protecting its increasingly digital and connected infrastructure – whether that is from malicious attacks, technical failures, or unpredicted weather impacts or spikes in demand. If we are wrong, we worry that the world will get a sudden and very unpleasant wake-up call – if not this year, then some time soon.”
Just Energy was founded in Mississauga, Ontario, in 1997, with the goal to provide customers with the energy they need as well as opportunities to become more efficient and leave behind a smaller carbon footprint. Just Energy and its affiliate companies rely on green energy options and dependable home and commercial service to build its customer base.
Just Energy is a leading independent energy supplier with over 1.6 million electricity and natural gas customer accounts across the US and Canada. Just Energy’s business involves the sale of natural gas and electricity to residential and commercial customers under long-term fixed-price or price-protected contracts (price protected for electricity). By securing the price for natural gas or electricity under such contracts for a period of up to five years, Just Energy’s customers reduce or eliminate their exposure to changes in the price of these essential commodities.
Founded in 2005, Infinite Energy offers great rates and award-winning, U.S.-based customer care, and serving most of New Jersey. They offer contracts anywhere from one month to up to five years. Infinite Energy offers flexible payment plans, managing accounts through online portal, customizing plans and services, and paying bills online. Infinite Energy also offers paperless billing and autopay options.
PPL Electric Utilities services over 1.4 million electricity customers in the central and eastern Pennsylvania counties of Lancaster, Lehigh, Pike, Monroe, Carbon, Schuylkill, Dauphin, Cumberland, Perry, Juniata, Northumberland, Snyder, Union, Clinton, Lycoming, Montour, Columbia, Luzerne, Lackawana and Wayne. The current PPL Price to Compare for electricity supply is 7.439¢ per kWh — effective 12/1/16 through 5/31/17.

TDU Delivery Charge: TDU stands for transmission and delivery utility — in other words, the utility company in your area that is actually piping the energy from the power generation companies into your home. (Remember, REPs in Texas are just the middleman.) The TDU delivery charge is set by the utility and is consistent from plan to plan and provider to provider within its service areas. For example, AEP , the TDU for Corpus Christi, charges the same delivery fee for all TXU, Direct Energy, and Reliant plans. You don't typically get a choice in utility company, and therefore, these fees are pretty much unavoidable, non-negotiable, and won't factor into choosing an electricity plan or provider.

Agera Energy is a leading supplier of electricity and natural gas; serving residential, small business and large commercial /industrial customers across the United States with one of the finest trained sales staff and first-class customer service representatives in the industry. Founded in 2014 the company operates in 16 markets and offers customized electricity and natural gas plans, fixed and variable contract terms, and renewable energy options.

1. Contracts: Before, there were no contracts. You signed up or you didn’t. When it’s the only game in town, you have to play by their rules. Nowadays, you’ll see these ultra-fabulous rates bandied about but it’s only by carefully scrutinizing the fine print that you’ll discover those wonderful rates come with a one-year lock-down or other catches.

As they’re advertised, the Digital Discount plan appears to save you $4 — but only if you use 32 percent of your energy on the weekends, which is the stat Reliant used to create the average price it advertises. Say you often travel for business during the week, and are only home cranking the air conditioner on weekends. If your energy use skews to 55 percent weekend use (for Reliant, that means 8 pm on Friday through 12 am Monday), suddenly Truly Free Weekends becomes a much better deal.
Your most effective weapon, however, is a site like ComparePower (Power to Choose) to locate and compare details from various Houston electricity resellers. In one fell swoop, you will efficiently and quickly locate and classify cheap electricity resellers all on one page, instead of wasting your valuable time searching out available companies and visiting their websites one by one (who even does that any more?).

TDU Delivery Charge: TDU stands for transmission and delivery utility — in other words, the utility company in your area that is actually piping the energy from the power generation companies into your home. (Remember, REPs in Texas are just the middleman.) The TDU delivery charge is set by the utility and is consistent from plan to plan and provider to provider within its service areas. For example, AEP , the TDU for Corpus Christi, charges the same delivery fee for all TXU, Direct Energy, and Reliant plans. You don't typically get a choice in utility company, and therefore, these fees are pretty much unavoidable, non-negotiable, and won't factor into choosing an electricity plan or provider.

Founded in 2005, Infinite Energy offers great rates and award-winning, U.S.-based customer care, and serving most of New Jersey. They offer contracts anywhere from one month to up to five years. Infinite Energy offers flexible payment plans, managing accounts through online portal, customizing plans and services, and paying bills online. Infinite Energy also offers paperless billing and autopay options.
Twenty bucks compared to a $2,000 bill? Not much to write home about, but hey — it’s free money. And, true, you’ll still get some free money when you use less energy, but rewards only really seem reward-y if you're shelling out big bucks. That same Direct Energy plan only yields about $6 in Plenti points per year if you use 500 kWh of electricity each month.
There are over 60 different energy suppliers competing for your business on any given day in Texas. Many of these electric companies have websites that are confusing and nearly impossible to navigate, their rates and fees hidden by dense industry jargon and misleading advertising. Who has the spare the time to sort through the choices spread out over all these different sites and companies?